Chapter 7 - Arrogance

It was just the brink of night. Wei WuXian walked for a while, but he didn't meet many cultivators. Suddenly, cries for help came from in front of him.

"Is anyone there?"

"Help us!"

Both male and female voices could be heard, and all sounded panicked, probably not faked.

"Faked? How could they be faked? Listen to how genuine those shouts are!", an obscure sect leader sniffed pompously.

Wei Wuxian was strongly reminded of the time everyone believed straight away the accounts of Sisi and Bicao, just on account of how 'detailed' and 'realistic' their accounts were. No one seemed to want to think objectively or consider the possibilities - once they believed something or wanted to believe something, they would obstinately stick to it and nothing would change their mind. Lost in thought, he ignored the sect leader completely. Luckily though, the narration quickly answered him anyway.

Cries for help from desolate mountains were usually the works of evil creatures, to lure ignorant people into traps.

The sect leader blinked. He hadn't considered that possibility, and with chagrin realised that if it was him in Wei Wuxian's place right then, he probably have rushed to be the hero without thinking, and possibly been trapped and eaten.

Yet, Wei WuXian was extremely happy. The eviler the creature was, the better it was for him!

Lan Qiren's eye twitched. He was trying to grow more tolerant of Wei Wuxian for Wangji's sake, and he had conceded that Wei Wuxian was not altogether an immoral and bad person, but when Wei Wuxian straight up said outrageous things like this... He took a deep breath in and held it for a few seconds before exhaling slowly. It wouldn't do good to qi deviate here in front of everyone.

Others weren't so calm, outright booing Wei Wuxian and cursing his immorality.

"Look at him grinning! He is so indecent."

Mothers whispered to their children, "Stay away from the Yiling Laozu, you see how evil he is? He will summon evil creatures to eat you!"

MianMian gave a dirty look to one mother. As a mother herself, she didn't condone spreading prejudice and exaggerated tales to the new generation.

"Who said he was going to do anything bad with the creature? Wei Wuxian is a good person, you just watch and see!" she said in an impassioned outburst of anger.

He directed the donkey toward the direction of the voices, but couldn't find anything around him. As he looked upward, instead of spirits or monsters, it was the rural clan that he met by the field earlier on, hung on the trees by a huge, golden web. After seeing that someone approached, they immediately brightened up, but the hope faded as they saw that it was a lunatic who came.

Jin Ling brightened as he realised he was about to make his first appearance, while Jiang Cheng soured as he remembered the humiliating situation with the deity-binding nets he'd strung up for Jin Ling.

Wei Wuxian was sighing. "Really, why do people judge so much based on appearances? If you judged every person with crazy makeup as a lunatic, and then decided not to bother talking or getting to know them, you'd really be missing out."

The juniors were nodding solemnly, still taking notes, while Jin Ling was making a rude face. He didn't want to listen to lectures about morality.

Although the threads of the deity-binding net were thin, the material was fine in quality, making them difficult to break. No matter human, god, demon, spirit, or monster, it would take a long while for the intruder to struggle out since it could only be broken by a superior magical tool. The lunatic probably didn't even know what it was, much less how to get them out of it.

"There it is again! I call that, discrimination against lunatics!" Wei Wuxian declared.

The rural cultivators who were in the net  and were now present in the room were feeling really foolish. Everyone had just witnessed them thinking that this 'lunatic' who was in fact one of the most talented and knowledgeable cultivators of all time, knew less about deity binding nets than they did.

Suddenly crisp sounds of parting branches and stepping on leaves approached. A boy wearing a lightcolored robe emerged from within the dark forest. The boy had a vermilion mark in between his eyebrows, his features delicate yet sharp. He was quite young, around the same age as Lan SiZhui —still in his adolescence.

"Wow... the first thing you do is compare me to Sizhui?? Thanks." Jin Ling muttered sourly.

Wei Wuxian wondered why he hadn't noticed the resemblance in Jin Ling's face to his father, Jin Zixuan. Now, he could see the finer details - the narrow brows, rounded chin and slender face from shijie, the haughty look and critical, tilted eyes from Jin Zixuan.

He carried a bamboo canister of feathered arrows and a luminous sword on his back, holding a longbow in his hand. The embroidery on his clothes was extremely delicate, forming a magnificent white peony in front of his chest. The golden threads glistened against the dark nighttime shades surrounding him. Wei WuXian silently exclaimed, "How wealthy!"

Jin Ling, as much as he was flattered that Wei Wuxian was taking his time describing him, felt quite stung that his first impressions on Senior Wei were 'same age as Sizhui' and 'wealthy'.

This must have been a young master studying in the LanlingJin Sect, since the sect was the only one with a white peony as the clan pattern, using the king of all flowers to suggest that they were the king of all cultivators.

Hushes whispers drifted around the room. Wei Wuxian had some very audacious thoughts...that apparently did turn out to be quite accurate.

The young master already had an arrow on his bow and was preparing to shoot it, when he realized that the deity-binding nets only caught humans. After an initial moment of disappointment, he quickly became annoyed, "I find you idiots every single time. There are more than four hundred deity-binding nets in the mountain, but you guys have already broken ten or so, and I haven't even seen the prey yet!" Wei WuXian thought, again, "How wealthy!"

Jin Ling couldn't hold it in. "Is that all you could think? 'How wealthy!' ??"

Jingyi replied, "Of course! You know how poor Senior Wei is, he must pine after money so much, since he doesn't have any..."

Wei Wuxian stared at Jingyi, affronted. He chose to reply to Jin Ling, though. "Jin Ling, I'm sorry, but to be honest, I just thought you were some rich young Jin member, I wasn't looking for or thinking about anything particularly deep. Besides, I'm sure your first impressions of me weren't great either!"

Jin Ling thought for a moment, then sniffed huffily. "No, it's fine."

A single deity-binding net was already expensive, yet he had set up four hundred all at once. A smaller clan would've become bankrupt after buying so many, but then, of course, this was the LanlingJin Sect. However, wasting deity-binding webs like this and not caring about what they caught shouldn't be considered night-hunting at all. In fact, it was almost as if they were chasing people away, not allowing others the chance of contributing to the process.

Jiang Cheng gave a 'hmph'. Was what he was trying to do that obvious??

Meanwhile other cultivators were murmuring and grumbling in agreement. It was good that Wei Wuxian understood how they felt all the time, watching these mighty clans act all superior and treat them like ants to be chased away or squashed.

After a few days of traveling slowly and listening to the intriguing conversations at Buddha's Feet, Wei WuXian gathered a lot of information about the changes to the cultivation world. As the final winner of the hundred-year-long cultivational disruption, the LanlingJin Sect was the head of all clans and sects—its leader was even referred to as the "commander" of all cultivators. Even before this, the Jin Clan was arrogant, admirers of extravagant splendor.

People were nodding vigorously now, seemingly forgetting that they weren't meant to agree with the Yiling Laozu.

After the years of being at the top and while strengthening the sect, it had trained all of its disciples to do whatever they wanted to. Even a slightly weaker clan would have to submit to their humiliation, much less a small, rural clan such as this one. This was why, although the people trapped in the nets were red with fury because of the mean words of the boy, they could not talk back. The middle-aged man spoke with tolerance, "Please, Young Master, do us a small favour and let us down."

Jin Ling looked down at his feet, unfamiliar feelings of guilt and shame spreading through him. He saw now, that from another perspective with Wei Wuxian's narration of how these smaller clans felt and thought, that how he used to treat others was really wrong. Even the middle-aged cultivator that was trapped by him had to feign politeness and speak deferentially to a brat a third of his age. No wonder everyone was so eager to overthrow the Wens, and then the Jins!

The boy was restless with the anxiety of his prey still not arriving, and it was convenient for him to direct his anger toward the country bumpkins. He crossed his arms, "You guys should just stay here, in case you mess around and get in my way again! I'll let you down after I catch the spiritconsuming beast, that is, if I still remember you." If they really stayed on the trees for the whole night and happened to bump into the creature that haunted Dafan Mountain, being unable to move, all they could do would be to wait for their souls to be sucked dry. The round-faced girl who gave an apple to Wei WuXian felt scared and started crying.

The audience muttered amongst themselves about the rudeness and cold-heartedness of this young Jin master. Sizhui, next to Jin Ling, saw his miserable, guilty face and patted his arm consolingly.

Wei WuXian was originally cross-legged on the donkey, but as it heard the sob, his long ears quivered, and it suddenly leaped forward. Unprepared for this, Wei WuXian was thrown off of its back, almost injuring his head as he fell. The donkey ran head-first toward the boy as if it believed that it could knock him off his feet with its head.

Many laughed and cheered the donkey on, then as one they gasped as Jin Ling pointed his arrow at the donkey. Wei Wuxian wondered why they were all so attached to his donkey so quickly.

Wei WuXian didn't want to find a new mount so soon, so he quickly yanked on its reins. The boy took a look at him, a look of shock to suddenly appear on his face. After a second, the shock turned into disdain. His mouth twitched, "So, it's you." The tone was made of twenty percent surprise and eighty percent disgust, making Wei WuXian blink. The boy spoke again, "Did you lose your marbles after you were thrown back to your village? How could they let you outside when you looked as freaky as this?" Did he really just hear something of such significance? Might it be, Wei WuXian suddenly realized, that Mo XuanYu's father isn't the head of some small sect, but the famous Jin GuangShan?

"Aren't you glad you bumped into me, then? Otherwise how would you have figured out Mo Xuanyu was an illegitimate son of Jin Guangshan?" Jin Ling said with pride to Wei Wuxian.

Wei Wuxian snorted. "Don't think so highly of yourself, I would've figured it out by myself sooner or later anyway."

"He did connect the dots really fast, didn't he?" remarked Guo Wanxin.

Jin GuangShan was the last leader of the LanlingJin Sect, having already passed away. On the topic of this man, one sentence could not tell the whole story. He had a fierce wife from a prominent family and, in fact, he was known for being scared of her.

Anyone who knew Madam Jin was nodding gravely. That woman was terrifying. Wei Wuxian pulled a face as he remembered how pushy she was in trying to make his shijie get together with that peacock.

No matter how fierce Madame Jin was, it was impossible for her to follow him twenty-four hours a day. Therefore, from ladies of distinguished statuses to prostitutes in rural areas, if he could get his hands on one, he wouldn't miss the chance. After he grew tired a woman, he would forget about her completely, without any responsibility or whatsoever. Among all of his illegitimate children, there was only one who proved to be exceptionally talented and ended up being taken back—the current leader of the LanlingJin Sect, Jin GuangYao.

Cracking knuckles echoed throughout the hall. Two names that were just as hated as Wei Wuxian's were 'Jin Guangshan' and 'Jin Guangyao'. Wei Wuxian particularly hated the former (he couldn't help but feel a little bad for Jin Guangyao, he was very talented, just too ambitious mainly. He'd always felt Jin Guangshan was responsible for how Jin Guangyao turned out, anyway).

Moreover, Jin GuangShan didn't die honorably either. He believed that he was old but vigorous, and wanted to challenge himself, fooling around with a group of women. However, unfortunately, he failed and passed away during the act. This was too humiliating, and so, the LanlingJin Sect told the public that the old leader died from overworking himself. All of the other clans decided to keep silent about the matter and pretended that they didn't know anything.

There were many dark chuckles. Most knew the actual truth of how he died, and it was a more than fitting punishment for Jin Guangshan's many sins, anyhow. No one really felt much sympathy for him.

Seeing that he was spacing out, the boy grew even more annoyed, "Get out of here! It's disgusting just looking at you, you damn gay!"

Sizhui and Jingyi looked around at Jin Ling with frowns. "That really wasn't necessary, he hadn't even done anything to you, why did you say such horrible things?"

Jin Ling immediately defended himself. "If you'd heard the rumours about what Mo Xuanyu had done..."

In terms of his generation, it was highly possible for Mo XuanYu to be an elder to the boy, maybe an uncle. After being humiliated by a junior like this, Wei WuXian thought that even if not for his own sake, he needed to return the humiliation for Mo XuanYu's body, "What an attitude! I suppose that you didn't have a mother to teach you?"

Wei Wuxian winced. "I'm sorry, again, Jin Ling."

Jin Ling responded abruptly, "You didn't know, so forget it."

The Jin Ling on the board however, didn't take it lightly at all.

Hearing his words, two raging flames sparked in the boy's eyes. He unsheathed the sword on his back and threatened, "What... Did you say?" The blade of the sword shone a golden light. Wei WuXian examined it attentively, somehow thinking that the sword seemed familiar to him. Then again, he had seen his share of gold, top-notch swords.

"How could you not remember Suiha, Jin Zixuan's sword? Your memory must be really bad." mocked Jiang Cheng.

Wei Wuxian snorted. "All the swords of the Jin sect look so similar. And  I hadn't seen that sword in 13 years, you have way too high expectations of my memory capability."

He didn't think too much about it and began to spin a tiny cloth bag that he held in his hand. It was a makeshift "spirit-locking bag" that he had created a few days ago, using the scraps and pieces of things.

Lan Zhan sighed, knowing what Wei Wuxian was about to do without having been there, but he privately approved of teaching this young boy a lesson for disrespecting others like that.

As the boy wielded the sword and came toward him, he fished a piece of human-shaped paper out of the spirit-locking bag. He shifted to the side, avoiding the attack, and slapped the paper onto his opponent's back. The boy's movements were already fast, but Wei WuXian had done a lot of "tripping someone while slapping a talisman onto their back", which meant that he was faster.

Perhaps it was because they disliked Jin Ling, or perhaps they were just relaxing and enjoying Wei Wuxian's commentary more, but the audience was laughing.

The boy suddenly felt his torso become numb, his back weakening, and he unwillingly collapsed onto the ground, with his sword also falling to the side with a clunk . He couldn't get up no matter how hard he tried, as if a mountain was on top of him. On his back, there was a ghost who had died from gluttony, crushing him to the point that he couldn't even breathe. Although the ghost was weak, it was completely capable of dealing with brats like this one.

"Sorry but... you really were being a brat, Jin Ling." Jingyi patted Jin Ling's hand, "But don't worry, we know that you're better now, haha!"

But now Wei Wuxian was feeling guilty for going so hard on a young kid like Jin Ling.

Wei WuXian picked up his sword, weighed it in his hands, and swung toward the direction of the deity-binding net, splitting it in half. The family fell to the ground in an awkward way, but they sprinted off without saying anything. The round-faced girl seemed as if she wanted to thank him, but she was pulled away by an elder, who was scared that Young Master Jin would hate them even more.

"Oh, that's why you didn't bother thanking me! Fair enough, though." Wei Wuxian said reasonably.

The boy on the ground was fuming, "You damn gay! Good for you, taking this sort of wrong path because you didn't have enough spiritual powers to do anything! Watch out for your life! Do you know who came today? Today, I..."

Although the cultivation method that he used in the past was often criticized and, in the long term, it harmed the cultivator's health, it could be mastered quickly. It was also especially attractive because there were no limitations as to the cultivator's spiritual powers or talent, making it so that there were always people who secretly practiced it to find a shortcut. The boy presumed that, after being chased from the LanlingJin Sect, Mo XuanYu had chosen the dishonorable path, which was a reasonable conclusion to draw, saving Wei WuXian from a lot of unnecessary trouble.

Lan Qiren looked in alarm at all the cultivators who were stroking their chins/beards thoughtfully, as if they were seriously considering Wei Wuxian's words.

Lan Xichen raised his voice, "I would like to reinforce his statement 'it harms the cultivator's health."

Wei Wuxian started saying, "Well..." Seeing the evil look Master Lan shot him, he hastily finished, "Yes! Zewu Jun is right. You see, I did demonic cultivation and I died, haha...so...remember the risks..."

Lan Zhan tried not to roll his eyes.

The boy pushed on the ground, but couldn't get up even after a few tries. His face was scarlet and he gritted his teeth, "If you don't stop, I'm gonna tell my uncle, and you're gonna wait for your death!" Wei WuXian wondered, "Why is it your uncle, not your dad? Who's your uncle, again?"

Wei Wuxian wanted to face-palm. Asking such a question, he was practically asking for something bad to come at him.

A voice suddenly came from behind him, a mixture of being bitter and cold. "I am his uncle. Do you have any last words?"

The crowd went "ooooh...." as they recognised the bitter voice of Sect Leader Jiang, all of them privately wondering how Wei Wuxian wriggled his way out of this.

Hearing the voice, all of the blood from Wei WuXian's body traveled to his head and drained away a moment later. The good thing was that his face was already a pile of white. A shade whiter wouldn't make too much of a difference.

'Ha! Good that you know to be scared of me, Wei Wuxian. I was definitely going to kill you."

"So, you don't want to kill him anymore?" a curious young cultivator asked.

Jiang Cheng ignored them and turned back to the board.

A violet-clothed youth approached in confident steps, his jianxiu robe flowing smoothly and his hand pressing on the hilt of his sword. A silver bell hung by his waist, although it made no sound as he walked. The young man had thin brows and almond eyes. His features were handsome in a sharp way, and his eyes held a composed vigor, with a slight intention of attack, appearing to be two bolts of lightning as he stared. He stood ten steps away from Wei WuXian, his expression resembling a honed arrow on the bow, ready to be released at any moment. Even his posture emitted an air of arrogance and overconfidence.

Jin Ling complained, "Why do you describe him so much more favourably than you described me??"

Wei Wuxian muttered, "Just describing it how I saw it..."

Jiang Cheng tried not to look too satisfied, but wasn't doing particularly well.

He frowned, "Jin Ling, why did you linger for so long? Do you really need me to come and pick you up? Look at what a terrible situation you're in right now, and get up!"

After the initial numbing of his head, Wei WuXian quickly realized what was going on. He curled a finger inside his sleeve and made the piece of paper retreat. Jin Ling felt his back lighten and immediately rolled up, grabbing his sword in the process. He shifted near Jiang Cheng and pointed at Wei WuXian accusingly, "I'm gonna break your legs!" With the pair of uncle and nephew standing beside each other, it was clear that they shared a close resemblance, probably able to pass for brothers.

Jin Ling and Jiang Cheng looked at each other uncomfortably. 'Brothers' sounded extremely inappropriate to their actual relationship.

Jiang Cheng moved his finger, and the paper doll swiftly flew out of Wei WuXian's hand and into his own. After taking one look at it, hostility came over his face. He pressured his fingers, and the paper was ignited, burning to dust with the screams of dark spirits. Jiang Cheng spoke grimly, "Break his legs? Haven't I told you? If you see this sort of evil and crooked practice, kill the cultivator and feed him to your dogs!" Wei WuXian couldn't even attempt to grab his donkey, backing away at rapid speed. He thought that, after so many years, no matter how much hatred Jiang Cheng had held for him, it would have disappeared long ago. He didn't expect that not only did it not disappear, it became richer, as if it was a jar of aged alcohol. At the present time, his hatred had grown to affect even people who cultivated like him!

"Nice metaphor, Wei Wuxian. You really thought I would just forget about what you did??"

"I thought you'd forget about me, I guess I was very wrong, haha..."

With someone backing him up, Jin Ling's attacks became more aggressive. Wei WuXian slid two fingers into the spirit-locking bag, about to take something out, when suddenly, the blue glare of a sword slashed out like lightning. It collided with Jin Ling's sword, breaking the powerful sword's golden rays in an instant. It wasn't because of the quality of the swords, but rather the great disparity in the strengths of the persons using the swords.

"It's Hanguang Jun!!!!" exclaimed the Lan juniors as well as many other fans of his among the seats.

Wei WuXian had originally calculated the timing, but his movements were suddenly interrupted by the sword's glare, causing him to trip. He fell toward the ground, right on top of a pair of snow-white boots.

"They really do always run into each other... it's fate I guess." remarked someone near the back of the room.

After pausing for a moment, he slowly lifted his head. What first came into his sight was a long, slender blade, crystalline and translucent, as if it was made of ice. In the cultivation world, this sword was one of the most famous ones. Wei WuXian had experienced its powers countless times, including both battles fought beside it and against it. The hilt of the sword was forged from pure silver that had been refined with secret techniques. The blade of the sword was extremely thin, almost transparent, sending forth the cold breaths of ice and snow. However, at the same time, it could cut through iron like cutting through mud. This was why, although the sword looked light, as if it could fly away any instant, it was actually quite heavy, unable to be wielded by the average person. Its name was "Bichen."

Jin Ling was still feeling sulky. "You even describe the sword more favourably that you described me!"

"Well, of course, it was Bichen!" exclaimed Wei Wuxian, "Don't you know, how pretty Bichen is? I could compliment it for years!!"

Lan Zhan narrowed his eyes at his husband.

"And I was wondering who it was. So, it is you, Second Young Master Lan."

The pair of white boots passed around Wei WuXian and calmly walked three steps forward. Wei WuXian raised his head and got up. As he walked past the former, slightly brushing their shoulders, he made eye contact with him for a short moment, pretending that it was unintentional.

He had an aura of smooth moonlight. The man wore a forehead ribbon with cloud patterns. His skin was fair, features both refined and elegant, as if he was a piece of polished jade. The colour of his eyes was especially light, like they were made of coloured glass, causing his gaze to be overly distant.

"Okay, Hanguang Jun wins, I guess. Wei Wuxian clearly likes you the most." Jin Ling grumbled. "I can't believe you compared him to a piece of polished jade, that's so cliché."

Lan Zhan tried his utmost hardest not to let his expression waver. Nonetheless, his ears were pink and he knew at least Lan Xichen would be able to tell that he was ridiculously pleased.

His expression held the traces of frost and snow, stern to the degree of being stiff, unwavering even as he saw Wei WuXian's ridiculous face. There wasn't a single speck of dust or wrinkled spot on him, from his head to his feet. It was impossible to find any fault with his appearance.

"Oh, you weren't done??" exclaimed Jin Ling. Lan Zhan's ears went even redder. Wei Wuxian didn't normally talk out loud about admiring his appearance. He knew now that Wei Wuxian had no idea about his feelings for him then, but he was still disappointed that his admiration for him then was only surface-level.

Even the most oblivious cultivator in the room was able to piece together what was going on between Wei Wuxian and Lan Zhan. No one spends so much time raving about how perfect someone else looked unless they were madly in love.

Many of the female cultivators (and the male cultivators) agreed heartily with Wei Wuxian's description and sighed dreamily at the pictures on the board. What a pity that Hanguang Jun was already taken...What did he see in that demonic cultivator anyway??

Even so, two capitalized words jumped into Wei WuXian's mind. Mourning clothes! Although all of the clans in the cultivation world used extravagant words to describe the GusuLan Sect's uniform as the best-looking uniform and Lan WangJi as an incomparable beauty who only appeared once in a blue moon, nothing could help the bitter facial expression that made him look as though his wife had passed away.

Lan Xichen's brows twitched. Of course Wei Wuxian didn't realise that he was the one who passed away and made Lan Zhan look so bitter.

Lan WangJi was silent, staring straight ahead, standing motionlessly in front of Jiang Cheng. Jiang Cheng was already exceptionally handsome, but as they stood face to face with each other, he still seemed a few degrees inferior.

Jiang Cheng looked irritated. "Fine! I get it, he's better than me! Why are your thoughts like this, Wei Wuxian??"

He raised one brow and spoke, "HanGuang-Jun, you sure live up to your reputation of 'being wherever the chaos is'. So, you had time to come to this remote area today?" Powerful cultivators from prominent clans usually didn't care to pay attention to lower level preys. However, Lan WangJi was an exception. He never cared for the prey of a night-hunt, and wouldn't refuse to go just because the creature was not threatening enough to increase his fame. If anyone wanted help, he would be there. He had been like this ever since he was young. "Being wherever the chaos is" was the comment that the public gave him for his night-hunts and, also, praise for his moral character. Right now, Jiang Cheng really didn't seem too polite as he said the words in such a tone. Even the juniors who came following Lan WangJi didn't seem comfortable hearing it.

Lan JingYi spoke straightforwardly, "Isn't Sect Leader Jiang here as well?"

Zizhen gave Jingyi a high five. Lan Xichen smiled again, full of pride for his little brother. He was glad that Wei Wuxian was able to grasp what a good person Lan Zhan was.

Jiang Cheng replied grimly, "Tsk , do you really think that you should butt in when your seniors are conversing? The GusuLan Sect has always been known for its respectful conduct. Is this really how it teaches its disciples?" Lan WangJi seemed as if he didn't want to engage in conversation, throwing Lan SiZhui a look. The latter understood and told the juniors to speak among themselves.

The Lan juniors looked at Sizhui in awe, at his ability to communicate silently with Hanguang Jun.

"It's because he's his dad, of course." Wei Wuxian put in. "Perfect dad, perfect child, hehe...."

Afterward, he spoke to Jin Ling, "Young Master Jin, night-hunts have always been fair competitions amongst the different clans and sects. However, to set up nets all over Dafan Mountain is clearly hindering the cultivators, causing them to fall into the traps. Is this or is this not against the rules of night-hunting?" Jin Ling's grim expression was exactly the same as his uncle's, "What can I do? It was their own fault for stepping into the traps. I'll solve everything after I finish capturing the prey."

Many people raised their eyebrows. The tripwires to set off the traps were designed to be basically undetectable to be able to catch even the most alert of monsters and prey. How could a few village cultivators be blamed for running into one of the 400 nets the Jin clan had strung around everywhere?

Lan WangJi frowned. Jin Ling was about to speak again, but he suddenly realised that, shockingly, he could neither open his mouth nor make any sounds. Seeing that Jin Ling's upper and lower lips became inseparable as if they were glued together, anger appeared on Jiang Cheng's face. The sloppy manners that he upheld before this were all gotten rid of, "You, with the Lan surname! What do you mean by this? It's not your turn to discipline Jin Ling yet, so release the spell, now!"

"There we go, Jiang Cheng shows his true angry self. Those 'manners' of your when you were trying to be polite were downright terrifying anyway", teased Wei Wuxian.

The silence spell was used by the Lan Sect to reprimand its disciples. Wei WuXian had suffered a ton from this little trick.

Lan Zhan's mouth twitched, as if he was remembering something funny.

Although it wasn't anything too complicated or obscure, only people of the Lan Clan could release the spell. If one wanted to forcibly speak, it would result in either their lips being ripped bloody or a hoarse throat for a couple of days. The only solution was to stay silent and reflect upon the wrongdoings until the time limit of the punishment was over.

Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes, "Like you ever reflected on your wrongdoings when you got silenced!"

Lan SiZhui spoke, "Sect Leader Jiang, there is no need for anger. As long as he does not break the spell forcefully, it would release on its own, after thirty minutes."

Before Jiang Cheng opened his mouth to speak, a purple-clothed man in the Jiang Sect's uniform ran toward them from within the forest. He shouted, "Sect Leader!" However, after seeing Lan WangJi's presence, he hesitated. Jiang Cheng spoke satirically, "Talk. Is there more bad news?"

The man spoke in a low voice, "Not long ago, a blue sword flew over and destroyed the deity-binding nets that you had set up." Jiang Cheng glanced at Lan WangJi harshly, his displeasure plastered all over his face, "How many were broken?"

The man replied carefully, "... All of them..." That's more than four hundred!

There were gasps. As much as they enjoyed seeing Jin Ling being disciplined, they were worried at Jiang Cheng's reaction to losing such a large amount of money (and dignity). They winced at the thought of such a waste of resources... so many deity-binding nets!

Jiang Cheng seethed with anger. He didn't expect the journey to be this unlucky. Originally, he came to help Jin Ling out. Jin Ling would be turning fifteen this year, the age of which he should already be making his debut and starting to compete with the juniors of other clans. Jiang Cheng considered the decision carefully before choosing Dafan Mountain as the location of the hunt. He also set up nets everywhere and threatened the cultivators of other clans, showing them the consequences so that they would retreat, in order to let Jin Ling take the top prize without anyone fighting against him.

Jin Ling blinked as he realised his uncle's behind the scene plotting to make it as easy as possible for him to succeed. Jiang Cheng was deliberately avoiding eye contact, scowling at the wall opposite, but Jin Ling was internally quite overwhelmed by his uncle's hidden care and concern for him.

Wei Wuxian snickered, already knowing that deep inside, past that grumpy and angry exterior, Jiang Cheng was really quite sweet and loyal to those who he loved.

Although four hundred deity-binding nets were a whopping price, it wasn't too much for the YunmengJiang Sect. Nonetheless, losing the nets were a small matter, but losing face was not.

Blinking at the  terrifying amount of wealth these big clans must have to be able to call 400 deity-binding nets 'a small matter', they did understand the humiliation that came with being punished by another clan.

With Lan WangJi's actions, Jiang Cheng felt a whirlpool of anger at the bottom of his heart, rising higher by every second. He narrowed his eyes, his left hand casually stroking the ring on his right hand's index finger. This was a dangerous sign. Everyone knew that the ring was a menacing, strong magical weapon. Whenever Clan Leader Jiang started touching it, it meant that he had the intent to kill.

Their hearts racing, the cultivators watched as the board went blank, signalling a short break before the next chapter. Giving a quick exhale, they stared at Jiang Cheng to try and gauge what he did next - did he attack Hanguang Jun? Did he win or lose? - but nothing could be picked out from his expression.